Maddison Keeney is poised to challenge China's springboard supremacy after countryman Kurtis Mathews could only watch as the diving superpower claimed another one-two finish in Paris.
Mathews (383.40 points) was good in the air but struggled with his entries in Thursday's Olympic 3m springboard final, finishing 10th behind runaway Chinese duo Xie Siyi (543.60) and Wang Zongyuan (530.20).
Mexican Osmar Olvera Ibarra (500.40) also cracked the 500-point barrier and was 70 points clear of fourth.
China, chasing an unprecedented sweep of all eight diving gold, have won the six on offer so far in Paris, while also claiming the gold-silver double twice.
But Keeney, fifth in the individual and third in the synchronised 3m springboard in her only other Olympic appearance in 2016, looms as Australia's fly in the ointment.
The 28-year-old got better and better in the morning's semi-final at the Paris Aquatics Centre.
Nailing her final three dives after a slow start, Keeney (334.70 points) was a clear second but still well behind Chinese standout Chen Yiwen (360.85).
Chen's countrywoman and reigning world champion Chang Yani (320.15) was uncharacteristically off the pace, Italian Chiara Pellacani (324.75) pushing her back to fourth ahead of Friday's final.
The Chinese duo stormed to the Games' first gold medal on the morning of day one in the 3m synchronised event, Keeney and Anabelle Smith missing a medal with a botched final dive.
The Chinese pair have hogged the top two spots on the podium of the last three world championships.
But Keeney, fourth at this year's event in Doha and fifth in her only other Games appearance in 2016, showed enough to suggest that duopoly could be under threat.
"I know my potential is there," she said.
"It's all about how you perform on the day and how everyone else performs on the day. I just focus on myself.
"My first dive was a bit shaky. My last dive was good. There's nothing super outstanding but there are things in there that I'm proud of, technique-wise, under pressure."
Fellow Australian Alysha Koloi was second after her first dive but faded to finish 14th and is second reserve for the final.
There was heartbreak for Mexican medal hope Aranza Vazquez Montano, who scored a zero on her penultimate dive to miss the top-12 by just 30 points.
Vazquez Montano immediately raised her hand when she resurfaced, appealing that she had been distracted before launching off the board.
But her request for a re-dive was waved away by the officials, who argued she should not have gone through with the attempt.
